Ashlyn Farley

January 27, 2017

Balloon Car Lab

Introduction:

Issac Newton was a scientist from England who created the three laws of motion. The

first law of motion is inertia. It is the tendency to keep your state of motion. The balloon cars

start out in the state of no motion. The second law of motion is force equals mass multiplied by

acceleration. The force of our balloon car is the air that pushes out of the balloon and accelerates

the car forward. The last law of motion is for every action, there is an equal and opposite

reaction. When the airs force moves the car, it accelerates down the hallway.

Problem:

What is the velocity of the balloon car?

Materials:

Balloon Car

Timer

Floor

Procedure:

1. Blow up the balloon.

2. After blowing up the balloon, put your finger on the end of the straw and set the car on

the floor.

3. Release your finger from the straw and start the timer at the same time.
 Ashlyn Farley
January 27, 2017

4. When the car stops, stop the timer and then count the tile blocks from where the car

started to where it ended.

5. Use the formula (block/3*.92=m) to get the distance the balloon car accelerated.

6. Repeat two more times to get all three trials done.

Data:

Trials: Distance: (meters) Time: (seconds) Velocity: (miles per

second) (v=d/t)

#1 11.04 10 1.1

#2 6.4 12 0.53

#3 9.5 19 0.5

Average Velocity: 0.71

Conclusion:

The average velocity of my balloon car is 0.71 meters per second. The biggest parts about

making a balloon car is the weight of it, the force from the air in the balloon, and putting the

stabilizers on the side of the car so it runs in a straight line.